Grinnell Athletics is proud to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month and the diversity of those in the Hispanic community at Grinnell College. Each Wednesday throughout the celebratory month, the Grinnell Athletics website will feature a Q&A with a Hispanic student-athlete. The national celebration spans September 15 – October 15 annually.
This week’s feature is on Michelle Briggs ‘13, a women’s volleyball/basketball player with a psychology major:
Q: What first got you interested in your sport(s)?
A: I asked mom to join a YMCA basketball team with my friends from school, mainly I just wanted to have a good time with friends and I did not start to be more competitive until I was older. For volleyball it was more about competition and the excitement of learning a new sport, because I started much later, my freshman year of high school.
Q: As a current student-athlete at Grinnell, what advice would you give to prospective students who are interested in participating in varsity athletics at the collegiate level?
A: It is definitely a commitment, but time management and being in communication with professors and coaches is a great way to stay organized and on track.
Q: How do you get focused and/or hyped before a game?
A: Listen to some music (gotta have some Mike Posner in there). Visualize. Set goals for myself.
Q: What is your favorite part about being a Pioneer athlete?
A: Support we get from Grinnell community as a whole, and the excitement we are able to bring to fans and fellow athletes when we succeed.
Q: If you were to put your iPod on shuffle right now, what three songs would come up?
A: Pumped up kicks- Foster the people ;Move Like Jagger- Maroon 5 ;Lights-Elli Goulding (Bassnector Remix)
Q: If you could meet any celebrity, who would it be and why?
A: Mike Posner! So he can buy me flowers and a tedaayyy
Q: Hispanic/Latino/a culture comprises more than 20 countries/nationalities and numerous ethnicities, how would you describe your Hispanic/Latino/a identity?
A: I identify as Brazilian-American
Q: What does your Hispanic/Latino/a heritage mean to you?
A: has become so much more a part of my life now that my family has moved to Brazil. Before the move our family participated regularly in Brazilian traditions and ate Brazilian cuisine, but now when I go home (Brazil) I am completely immersed in the culture and the language. I continue to develop an appreciation and a further understanding of my culture every time I go home. I continue to become more of Brazilian and actively create my Brazilian identity rather than just inherit it also great to get a chance to keep up with my Portuguese!
